The Heavens Begin with Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 94: Baoyu and Daiyu discuss their engagement

Xue Pan was afraid that the night would be long and he would have more trouble, so he wrote a letter the next day and had it delivered to Jinling by express horse.

After receiving the letter, the various branches of the Xue family in Jinling were overjoyed. They gathered together and began to discuss who would get the job of imperial merchant.

In the original Xue family's old house, several masters sat together, sipping tea leisurely and sighing:

"Speaking of which, Wenlong is really lucky!"

"He killed someone and fled to the capital, where he happened to meet a noble man who helped him and he became an official."

"Come to think of it, when did you arrange a marriage for Baochai? Why haven't we heard you mention the name of Mr. Zhan?"

Facing the second master's question, the third master curled his lips disapprovingly and snorted:

"Who knows!"

"My eldest brother passed away early, and he didn't explain many things clearly. Maybe the children were still young at that time, so he didn't have time to tell them!"

He casually threw the teacup onto the table, and with a clang, he spoke with a sting in his voice:
"Second brother, you really made a profit this time!"

"Not only did he find a good marriage for Qin, but he also got the job as a royal merchant without any effort."

"In recent months, something big seems to have happened overseas. Few merchant ships have docked. The prices of overseas goods have skyrocketed several times. It's really a profit if you get them!"

"It's a pity that after we split up, we can no longer get goods from the Maritime Customs. We can only watch Wenlong get rich."

"If I had known, I would have tried my best!"

The second master's face darkened and he sneered:
"Haha, Third Brother, don't be jealous. It's hard to say whether this is a good thing or a bad thing!"

"Why is it hard to say?" asked the third master with a raised eyebrow.

The second master looked around at the brothers around him and saw that their eyes were flickering. It was obvious that they were all interested in the position of the imperial merchant, so he said in a deep voice:

"Everyone present here today is a brother, so why don't we just speak frankly and not talk nonsense."

"Wenlong was useless before, and we can't let the Xue family fall into the hands of a second-generation rich man, so everyone proposed to split up the family."

"Everyone says this to the outside world, but everyone knows the actual situation in their hearts."

"I'm just going to say something harsh here."

"There is such a huge hole in the Royal Merchants' accounts that even if we confiscate all the Xue family's assets, it still won't be able to fill it!"

"We don't want to be confiscated and exterminated, so we just want to cut ties with the imperial merchants. If there is a reckoning in the future, we will use Wenlong's family as the scapegoat."

"But without the protection of the royal family, how can our Xue family still be ranked among the four major families in Jinling?"

"Instead of waiting for your own business to be slowly swallowed up by others, it is better to seek refuge with a noble person as soon as possible and hold on to a big thigh."

"Originally, our Xue family belonged to the Supreme Lord, but after we were unable to make money for the Supreme Lord, we became useless!"

"The emperor is doing well, and we all want to curry favor with him, but if we don't fill that hole, there is no way the emperor will accept us."

"Now it seems that Wenlong is lucky. He is now a Jinyi Tiqi and a servant of the emperor."

"Apart from the two supreme rulers, the cabinet is the largest, so we have to find civil officials to rely on, by giving gifts and arranging marriages, hoping to use money and connections to build a cabinet minister."

"With the support of the cabinet ministers, although the big hole cannot be filled, it can be smoothed out. Throw all the responsibility to Wenlong, and then we will take over the Royal Merchants, and no one will pursue it anymore."

"You have only seen Wenlong give up the position of the Royal Merchant. The Royal Merchant is within your reach, but don't forget that the news from Mei Hanlin has not been finalized yet!"

"If there are no civil officials backing us up, the huge hole will never be filled. Whoever takes over this imperial merchant will die!"

"Even if Mei Hanlin has a way to fill this huge hole, there's no scapegoat left!"

"Wenlong is now a captain of the Imperial Guards. He can never be blamed for the huge hole!"

After hearing the second master's analysis, everyone else fell silent.

After a while, the third master frowned and said:

"Although Wenlong has escaped and become an official now, the huge hole in the account cannot be blamed on the new imperial merchant, right?"

"Haha..." The second master sneered and said, "If the new imperial merchant is not us, then of course it cannot be attributed to the new imperial merchant."

"But we can't!"

"We are originally from the Xue family. Although we have separated, we are still related if we must investigate."

Everyone was upset after hearing this. "So according to you, second brother, we can't touch this imperial merchant?"

The second master hesitated for a long time, but he still couldn't bear to give up the benefits of the imperial merchant, so he said hesitantly:

"In fact, the best candidate for the imperial merchant right now is still Wenlong!"

"He is a captain of the Imperial Guards and belongs to the emperor. It is safest for him to be a royal merchant!"

"It's a pity that Wenlong has no brother, only a sister. Although Baochai is capable, she is a girl!"

After hearing this, everyone fell silent again.

After a while, someone suddenly whispered:
"As a girl, does that mean I can't take over the Imperial Merchant?"

"I remember there seemed to be a widow on Jiangnan Road, and her business was thriving."

The second master frowned and waved his hands when he heard this, saying, "How can that be the same? Old Eight, stop making trouble here!"

The man who was speaking was the youngest among the brothers. He usually had no sense of existence. Now that he was yelled at, he was unhappy and retorted:

"What's the difference?"

"Besides, even if my daughter can't take over the imperial business, what about my son-in-law?"

"son in law?"

Several people were stunned, looked at each other, and said thoughtfully:
"Youngest brother, what you mean is that we should let Mr. Zhan be the Royal Merchant, but still use the name of our Xue family?"

"That's a good idea, but Mr. Zhan will definitely not agree!"

"I heard that Mr. Zhan, who has made greater contributions than Wenlong, is probably going to be rewarded as an official, and it is impossible for him to become an imperial merchant."

"Even if they did, they are the royal merchants of the Zhan family, and have nothing to do with our Xue family."

"Tsk!" The Eighth Master curled his lips in disdain and sneered, "How can we let Master Zhan do this kind of thing? Of course, he should find a son-in-law for Baochai!"

"Ah?" Everyone was shocked. "Baochai is engaged to Mr. Zhan!"

"Haha..." The Eighth Master looked around at his brothers proudly and said proudly, "You don't know this. Baochai is seriously ill and there is no medicine to cure her. She won't live long!"

"What?" Everyone was even more surprised and hurriedly asked for details.

"When Baochai was young, she was seriously ill for a period of time. No one could cure her. Later, a bald monk prescribed a prescription for her, a Lengxiang Pill, which controlled her illness."

"It involved a lot of people and cost a lot of money. I think everyone still remembers it, right?"

After everyone thought about it carefully, they indeed had an impression, so they nodded and asked:
"But the disease has come back again?"

The Eighth Master nodded and said:

"Isn't it?"

"Besides, the Lengxiang Pills have very demanding configuration, and now they can't be prepared!"

"Do you think Baochai can be okay like this?"

"In my opinion, since Baochai is not going to get well, let's not ruin Mr. Zhan's good marriage. We can just choose Baoqin to replace Baochai, and then quickly find a son-in-law for Baochai, and let that son-in-law take over the job of the imperial merchant."

"Even if Baochai is gone in the future, but the son-in-law is still here, the job of the imperial merchant will not fall to anyone else."

Everyone applauded and cheered after hearing this, but the second master's face darkened and he shouted angrily:
"Old Eight, what nonsense are you talking about!"

"Baoqin is currently negotiating a marriage with the Mei Hanlin family. If you ask her to replace Baochai at this time, what will the Mei Hanlin family think?"

The Eighth Master spread his hands and said:
"Our family no longer has the support of the royal family. We are no longer one of the four great families in Jinling. The chances of the Hanlin family's son falling in love with Baoqin are slim. We might as well find someone who is more reliable."

"Then Mr. Zhan will definitely have a bright future. It would be a great advantage if he were to marry her now!"

"That is, there is no girl of marriageable age in my family. Otherwise, would it be Baoqin's turn?"

Everyone looked around and thought carefully, and found that indeed, only Baoqin from the second master's family was of the right age. The daughters of other families were either too young, already married, or simply had no daughters. In short, there was no suitable candidate to replace Baochai from the first wife.

Seeing the second master's gloomy face and displeasure, the third master hurriedly tried to smooth things over:

"There's no need to rush into this kind of thing, as it hasn't even started yet!"

"However, since we have to go to the capital to discuss the matter of the imperial merchants, why not let Baoqin go to the capital as well and stay at the Jia Mansion so that Master Zhan and Mei Hanlin's son can meet them first."

"As for whether Baoqin will be betrothed to Mei Hanlin's son or replace Baochai, I think we can wait until we get to the capital and see how things go."

"To put it bluntly, marriage is nothing more than a business. It all depends on who can give the most benefits."

"If we can use our connections and money to push Mei Hanlin into the cabinet, then of course a relative of a cabinet minister will be more important than a businessman."

"Besides, with the help of the elder, we don't need a son-in-law to take over the position of the imperial merchant. Can't we do it ourselves?"

"But if Mei Hanlin fails to join the cabinet, then we have to make plans early!"

"Once we get to the capital, let's test the attitude of the eldest sister-in-law first, and then see which way the court is heading. It won't be too late to talk about other things later."

After hearing this, everyone agreed, and the matter was settled. The second master took his son Xue Ke and daughter Xue Baoqin to Beijing to visit their relatives.

Let's talk about Master Zhan. After he came back from subduing demons, he received news from the palace that Erguotou had been included in the palace purchases, but the name was not elegant enough and needed to be changed.

Mr. Zhan certainly understood the meaning. As long as the name is changed, it will be another kind of wine, or tribute wine. Then the purchase price is ten times that of Erguotou, which is also very reasonable, right?

The person in charge of purchasing in the palace would definitely not mind this kind of thing, as they would get their kickbacks anyway.

In the past, he wanted to send wine to the palace and asked Xue Pan to find various people to use their connections, but in the end, those useless people asked for a high price. Now, without spending a penny, the palace came to him on its own initiative.

The reason was simply that the current emperor looked at him differently, and this group of Shunfengcao, who were most sensitive to the emperor's attitude, also took the initiative to come forward and show their goodwill.

Of course, Master Zhan would not refuse such goodwill, and he immediately sent someone to deliver some silver to each of the eunuchs.

Others may not want it, but you cannot not give it to them.

Is that money?

That's a thoughtful gesture!
He didn't care about the money he earned from the tribute wine, but he didn't want anyone to slander him behind his back.

This group of eunuchs are incapable of accomplishing anything, but are more than capable of causing trouble.

Anyway, the wool comes from the sheep, and the silver given to the eunuchs will eventually be converted into the purchase price of tribute wine. It is equivalent to using the emperor's money to do favors. Why not do it?

After all these relationships were taken care of, the matter of tribute wine became a natural outcome.

Changing the name was simple. Zhan Ershisi found a great scholar and gave it an elegant name, "Gan Li". Then he went through the purchasing procedures. He didn't need to worry about the rest of the things and could just leave it to the butler Yang Yougong.

After Yang Yougong received the order, he stood up and was about to leave, but suddenly turned back and whispered:

"Master, Mr. Lian has already brought Miss Lin back."

"Oh?" Master Zhan raised his eyebrows and asked, "How is the Lin family's wealth divided?"

Yang Yougong said:
"According to our investigation, the land, shops, houses and other properties were distributed to the clan members, but the cash deposited in the bank is nowhere to be found. I suspect that the banknotes were given to Miss Lin to carry with her."

"Haha..." Master Zhan sneered and said, "Lin Ruhai is not a fool. How could he dare to give so much money to his own little girl? Is he afraid that she won't die quickly enough?"

"Most likely the money is with Master Lian. You can arrange something and have some action on the mountain." "The old rules, we only seek money, not life."

Yang Yougong nodded in agreement and left.

However, a few days later, Mr. Lian brought Lin Daiyu and others back to Rongguo Mansion.

"what?"

"Did you lose Miss Lin's dowry?"

Mrs. Wang glared at Jia Lian who was kneeling in the hall, and was furious.

She had a conflict with Wang Xifeng before, and she could never win against Feng Lazi in a verbal battle. She had been feeling depressed these days, and then she saw Lian Er bringing such a big mistake to her hands. How could she let it go so easily? She immediately pointed at him and started scolding him.

"The palace let you take Miss Lin back because they thought you were a decent person, but now you've caused such a big mess. You might as well just find a servant to do it!"

"Just looking at your bear-like appearance, you really are your father's offspring, and you can't do anything human!"

"My brother-in-law was really blind to believe you and let you take all those banknotes!"

Wang Xifeng had a gloomy face, very dissatisfied with her aunt taking advantage of the situation, but her master had indeed messed up the job this time, so even if she wanted to make amends, she couldn't open her mouth.

Putting aside other things, with so much silver in her hands, wouldn't it be easy for her to spend thousands or even tens of thousands of taels?
Even if you don't do anything with this, even if you use this silver to invest, it will still be a profit of tens of thousands of taels!

Whenever she thought of the hundreds of thousands of taels of silver that were stolen by the robbers, she felt as if her own home had been robbed, and she felt pain all over her body from her heart to her toes!

Instead, Sister Lin, who was standing by, stepped forward and said:
"Second Madam, please don't blame Second Brother Lian. He was caught by robbers at the time, and Second Brother Lian didn't want to do that."

"The robbers searched me one by one. Even if I had put the silver on me, I wouldn't be able to keep it. I might even be humiliated for no reason."

"Fortunately, everyone is safe, which is more important than any money."

"As for the dowry or not..." Lin Daiyu subconsciously glanced at Baoyu next to her, "With the old lady and several elders here, do I really have to worry about not having a dowry when I get married in the future?"

"Girl Lin is right!"

A voice came from outside the hall, and everyone turned to look, only to see Lady Jia, who had rushed over after hearing the news, being supported by Yuanyang.

Everyone hurriedly stood up to greet her and invited the old lady to sit in the middle.

After Jia's mother sat down, she stretched out her hand and first took Sister Lin into her arms, then she slowly spoke:

"Lian'er didn't do her job well, she should be punished!"

"But there was a reason for this. He either stole the silver or spent it, or something like that. He was just unlucky enough to be robbed. Even if he lost his life, he couldn't keep the silver."

"But it is also true that Miss Lin's dowry was lost."

She patted Daiyu's back and comforted her:

"Don't worry, little girl. When you get married in the future, this dowry will be given to you. I will definitely let you marry off in glory!"

Daiyu blushed and said shyly:
"I won't marry anyone. I will stay in the mansion with my ancestors forever."

Grandmother Jia burst into laughter and said:
"What nonsense are you talking about?"

"How can a girl not get married?"

"I am very pleased that you have this intention. Don't worry, I will definitely find you a good husband that suits your heart."

Wang Xifeng, who was standing by, watched coldly, thinking of the scarce savings in the mansion. She thought that if she prepared an additional decent dowry, it would surely make the already tight financial situation of the mansion even worse. Instead of that, it would be better to... just digest it internally!

Thinking of this, Feng Lazi laughed out loud and said in a joking tone:
"That's what the old lady is thinking!"

"Sister Lin doesn't want to get married, she just doesn't want to marry someone else!"

"Sister Lin and our brother Bao are childhood sweethearts. They are a perfect match."

"If you let me say it, the old lady should just make the decision today and settle their marriage!"

"Oh?" After hearing this, Jia's mother lowered her head to look at Daiyu in her arms, but saw that Daiyu's face was blushing and she just buried her face in her arms. Suddenly, she knew something.

She turned her head to look at her beloved Baoyu, but saw that Baoyu's face was confused and she didn't know whether he was happy or angry.

Little did he know that after hearing this good news, Baoyu's first reaction was, what if Sister Lin also turned into a dead pearl after marriage?
Do you want Brother Zhan to help moisturize it first?
Mrs. Wang didn't like Daiyu very much in the first place. When she heard Wang Xifeng's suggestion, she thought she was just taking revenge on Lian Er for her scolding. She glared at her and wanted to quarrel with her. Now that her son didn't look happy, she opposed the marriage even more and said hastily:

"Baoyu is still young now, so why not wait a few more years until they are older? There is no rush to bring up this matter."

Daiyu also felt that Baoyu seemed to have no reaction, so she secretly raised her head from Jia's mother's arms. As expected, she saw that Baoyu's face was full of confusion, without any joy at all. She immediately became angry and started to lose her temper. She said coldly:
"Second sister-in-law Lian has misunderstood!"

"Master Bao is a fine gold and beautiful jade, different from the common people, outstanding, handsome, and his character is precious, how can others compare to him?"

"I am just a little girl without a father or a mother. I have been spoiled since childhood, lack education, and have a bad temper. How dare I marry Master Bao!"

When Baoyu heard Lin Daiyu say this again, he was suddenly startled, reacted, and hurried forward to express his opinion.

"What's so high-flying about it?"

"I am just an ignorant fool. How can I be as good as Sister Lin said?"

"I was so happy I was stupid!"

"If I could marry Miss Lin, it would be a blessing that I have cultivated for several lifetimes. I would be so happy!"

In the original book, Baoyu was hesitant and reluctant between Baochai and Daiyu, but now, since Baochai came into the mansion, she has never been kind to Baoyu and has deliberately distanced them.

Although Baoyu is still a bootlicker, he has never been able to lick Baochai, so Lin Daiyu has no competitors.

Now that Lian's second sister-in-law had pointed this out, and Lin Daiyu had retorted with another word, Baoyu subconsciously said this out loud. After he had said it, he suddenly remembered that his parents were watching him nearby, and his face immediately turned pale, fearing that he would be scolded by his father.

Fortunately, the most powerful person at the scene is Lady Jia, and her words count.

After hearing what Baoyu said, Grandmother Jia smiled and all the wrinkles on her face smoothed out.

"Okay, okay, you are all good kids!"

"In that case, I will take charge and finalize the marriage."

When Wang Xifeng saw that Lady Jia had spoken, she knew that she had done her favor and that Daiyu would most likely no longer bear a grudge about the lost silver, and the matter could be put to rest. She immediately smiled and went forward to congratulate her.

"Congratulations to Brother Bao and Sister Lin, the young couple has finally achieved their happy ending!"

When Lin Daiyu heard this, her face turned red with shame, and she buried her head in Grandmother Jia's arms again, without saying a word.

Baoyu also lowered his head in embarrassment, not daring to accept the cold gaze of his parents.

With Wang Xifeng taking the lead, most of the people in the hall followed suit and came forward to congratulate her, which immediately made Mrs. Wang even more angry.

Her mind raced and she hurried forward to stop him.

"Old lady, my brother-in-law has just passed away. If we arrange a marriage for Miss Lin, I'm afraid it would be inappropriate. If outsiders knew about it, they would inevitably say something strange."

"I think we should put the engagement on hold for now. It won't be too late to talk about it after the mourning period for my brother-in-law is over."

After hearing this, Jia's mother also felt that something was wrong, so she said:
"It was indeed a bit urgent and too hasty."

"Well, let's put it aside for a while, and wait until next year to go through the three books and six ceremonies process."

Filial piety is the most important virtue. No one could hold such a wedding right after Lin's father died. But since Lady Jia had spoken, the marriage was basically settled. All that was lacking were some etiquette and procedures.

In other words, in the eyes of the people in the mansion, Lin Daiyu is now their real future mistress.

Even Baoyu was delighted, and he and Daiyu exchanged glances secretly, ignoring the threat from his father and mother.

After everything was settled and everyone had left, Daiyu returned to her own courtyard with the help of Xueyan.

But this time this quiet courtyard is no longer quiet, as there is an endless stream of visitors.

"Oh, the people in the Jia family are really snobs!"

After sending away another wave of visitors who came to congratulate her, Xueyan curled her lips and said disdainfully:

"In the past, all the stewards in the mansion treated our girl as superfluous and refused to even look at her. If you don't pay them, you can't order them around. But now they are eager to come up to us and say so many nice things to please us!"

“It’s disgusting just to hear that!”

"What have you been doing so far?"

"If it were you, Miss, you shouldn't pay any attention to them. You should just lock them all out and embarrass them."

Daiyu also didn't like the looks of these people, so she frowned and said sarcastically:
"You just think they are here to tease us?"

"It's just for the masters and mistresses in the mansion to see!"

"Even the legitimate ladies and gentlemen have to call you grandpa or uncle. You really embarrass him. Aren't you afraid of shortening your life?"

Zijuan could only say nice things to help calm her down, and said with a smile:
"We will all be a family sooner or later. Miss, please control your temper and don't offend them. Otherwise, who knows what will happen next."

Daiyu's face changed immediately after hearing this, but she said stubbornly:

"It's changed, so what?"

"Don't talk like I can't get married and have to marry that idiot!"

Zijuan knew her young lady's temper and knew that she would be reluctant to see the marriage fall through. Seeing her being petty again, she smiled secretly and said:

"Miss, you may not know that these people flocked here just to build relationships."

"Only the housekeepers and stewards come here to make themselves familiar to the future housekeeper's wife. Ordinary servants come here to congratulate, purely for the reward money."

"If you really want to know, this is the trend that the Xue family brought after entering the mansion. They give money to everyone when they congratulate them, and they have spoiled everyone."

"We don't have that much silver to reward, so we just need to let them know this, and then fewer people will come later."

After hearing this, Daiyu's face suddenly turned ugly.

When people came to congratulate her in groups, she disliked the noise, but if no one came to congratulate her, she felt left out.

But this kind of thing cannot be said out loud, Daiyu just snorted coldly and said stubbornly:
"It would be better not to come!"

"It's a good opportunity to see who is sincere and who is fake."

"Even if those sycophants come, I won't bother to deal with them!"

Seeing her ugly face, Zijuan knew that she had said something wrong again, so she quickly changed the subject and said:

"Next time the steward and servants come, I will keep them out, so as not to disturb the young lady's mood."

"But if some idiot comes, we can't stop him."

Daiyu's attention was diverted, her face turned red, and she said angrily:

"You already said he was an idiot, why are you still blocking him?"

"This is someone else's house, so you can go wherever you want."

As she spoke, Daiyu could not help but smile shyly, with a glimmer of hope in her eyes. Even the pain brought by her father's death dissipated a lot.

Zijuan and a few others joined her in chatting and laughing, and every word they said was about Baoyu, which made Daiyu very angry.

The robbery of hundreds of thousands of taels of silver was quietly covered up, and no one mentioned it again. They just sent someone to report the case to the Shuntian government office, but there was no hope that the thief could be caught.

Only Master Zhan, with so many banknotes in his hands, was worried about how to clean up the lost money.

Thanks to "Reader 20201027194049601384658" for providing the name of the wine "Ganli". It has been a month and I finally found a suitable opportunity to release it.

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(End of this chapter)